Addressing the energy crisis

Torus Tammer

FOUNTAIN VALLEY -- Water and energy consultant Lon House visited the

Orange County Municipal Water District last week to discuss the state’s

ongoing energy crisis and, specifically, its effect on water utilities.

Meeting with the Water Advisory Committee of Orange County, House said

he wanted to give local officials some background on the energy crisis

and let them know what to expect.

“We are looking at a long and uncomfortable summer with a lot of

blackouts,” he said. “I think the reason is that the preventive steps

that should have been taken weren’t.”

House said part of his frustration is that the state has spent

billions of dollars to supposedly help solve the problem, yet there is no

new electricity being generated.

“We basically just have a huge credit card bill,” he said. “They spent

$4.7 billion and have nothing to show for it.”

Keith Coolidge, the water district’s associate general manager, said

it was important to have House address the advisory committee because it

is a forum for the water industry.

“I thought his perspective would be good for us,” Coolidge said. “He

does not paint the rosiest picture, certainly not as much as our friends

in the Legislature do.”

House said the fundamental problem is that it’s too late to do

anything.

Although the concept of conservation is imperative, he said, the state

is still going to be playing catch-up and probably looking at a

three-year problem because it will take that long for liquefied natural

gas to be available.

House said he challenges water agencies to become more

self-sufficient.

“Whatever is done from here on out, we are doomed,” he said. “Now

there isn’t enough time to get sufficient conservation or alternative

generation technology in place prior to summer.

“The real denial is that California is the sixth largest economy in

the world, and because of that so many people think that this can’t be

happening. But it is, and it’s real.”